While Giants fans have been rabble-rousing Tom Brady over the upcoming Super Bowl XLVI, environmentalists are giving the Patriots quarterback and his supermodel wife Gisele Bundchen the stink eye for a different reason – their brand new, 22,000 sq. ft. mega mansion in Brentwood, CA. The celebrity couple recently moved into the $20 million home with their young son, and one has to ask why a two and a half person family needs such a ginormous space (if you do the calculations, that’s about 7,333 sq. ft. per person). Bundchen, who is known for her eco-activism, rebutted people who questioned how such a McMansion could be called eco by touting its sustainable features such as solar panels on the roof and rainwater recovery systems, but we wonder if that’s enough to call the ginormous home green.

The eight bedroom mansion has a six-car garage, a lagoon-like swimming pool, a spa, a gym, a nursery, a butler’s room, an elevator and a wine cellar. Apparently, Bundchen and Brady purchased the land in 2008 and had an original plan for the house, but ended up adding to it because they felt it was too small. To give you more of an idea of how sprawling the home is, the two wings are connected by a bridge.

While the vast size of the manse has many environmentalists raising their eyebrows, Bundchen is reported to have explained that the home is actually quite sustainable with solar panels installed on the roof, rainwater recovery systems, waste reduction and recycling programs, energy-efficient lighting and appliances and eco-friendly building materials. She also made the case that while the Brady clan is only three people, with all of their relatives constantly visiting, they need more space. What do you think? Is the Brady-Bundchen mansion simply too large to be considered eco-friendly or should they at least get props for incorporating sustainable features?

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5 Comments

kda3251February 6, 2012 at 10:09 pm

20 million dollars could have accomplished a lot of good in the world…alleviated a lot of pain and injustice. Instead, Tom and his Barbie doll wife decided to invest it in a piece of gaudy,overpriced real estate. This profligate use of undeserved wealth typical of so many pro-athletes, celebrities and CEO’s is a prime example of why we need to revert to raising taxes on the wealthy to 90%.

cforanFebruary 2, 2012 at 7:33 pm

sorry, but for crying out loud. Do 3 people really need enough space for a football field, the Royal Palace or the White House to be place upon their property? How the heck do you think generations of successful people were raised in times past? It certainly wasn’t in 20,000 sq. ft. palaces. Shame on Brentwood, Beverly Hills, Malibu and any other community who allows these monstrosities to go up. Shame on the cities who give licenses and building rights for these absolutely unnecessary eyesores to be erected in what was once beautiful, sprawling ranchland and sycamore filled canyons. It’s all about the bottom line, folks. NO ONE needs that much space to live . NO ONE. period. nuff said. If you are really green as you profess to be, then you live green.If you have to live in a castle, then you are hardly living green, no matter how many energy saving lightbulbs you profess to use. 6 car garages are hardly candidates.

His house might be green, but he’ll be seeing all blue next week, booya

batshalomJanuary 25, 2012 at 10:39 am

size aside – its all in the numbers. I wonder if she has any clue about embodied energy, or what the ultimate carbon footprint is? If its completely off the grid, and anyone bothered to quantify about this building’s performance or impact, I’d have more respect for the claims than just waving at a few obvious (and possibly useless) gestures like a few solar panels…
It would be great to invite them to publish any data they have – as a way of educating their community of peers!